Webster's defines a "straw man" as "an argument or opponent set up so as to be easily refuted or defeated." We can find no better example than Gov. Larry Hogan's crusade against what he calls Maryland's "rain tax," which led this week to his...

When Brian Frosh became Maryland's attorney general several weeks ago the program for the investiture ceremony informed us that he was Maryland's 46th attorney general. There are some traditionalists, however — and perhaps some querulous archival...

Next month brings Maryland a new chief executive and a new top lawyer who differ sharply on important issues — particularly how to clean up the Chesapeake Bay. They've also clashed personally in the past.
As they prepare to meet Friday, Gov.-...

Attorney General Douglas F. Gansler handed a victory to Frederick County's new Democratic chief executive Tuesday as he ruled that the county commissioners' decision to appoint her defeated Republican foe to the county Planning Commission was invalid.
Gansler, in his final weeks in office, ruled that the Nov. 24 appointment of former commission President Blaine Young violated laws against one person holding two offices at the same time.
The ruling had been sought by County Executive Jan Gardner, who...

Gov. Martin O'Malley announced Wednesday that he would erase the last vestiges of Maryland's death row by commuting the sentences of the state's remaining condemned murderers to life without parole.
Acting on the last day of the year and with three weeks remaining in his term, O'Malley said he will spare the lives of four men left in limbo after Maryland abolished the death penalty for future offenders in 2013.
The four are Vernon Evans, Anthony Grandison, Jody Lee Miles and Heath William Burch....

Today, Gov. Martin O'Malley formally issued notice of his intent to commute the sentences of Maryland's four remaining death row inmates to life without the possibility of parole. While Mr. O'Malley's critics may be quick to sniff out Democratic presidential primary politics at work in this announcement during the final days of his administration, it is the moral choice, the humane choice and the practical choice for him to make.
We have great sympathy for those whose family members were killed by these...

State Sen. Brian E. Frosh will be sworn in today as Maryland's 44th attorney general.
During a ceremony in Annapolis, Frosh will take over from out-going Attorney General Douglas F. Gansler who held the post for eight years.
The attorney general is the state's top lawyer, charged with advising the governor and the legislature, as well as defending the state in court. Over the past two decades, the office has increasingly taken on a consumer protection and environmental watch-dog role.
Frosh, a...

In his first moments in office, Maryland Attorney General Brian Frosh warned that budget cuts would impair the ability of state lawyers to do their jobs and reduce their ranks.
Frosh was sworn in Tuesday afternoon as Maryland's 44th attorney general, making him the state's chief lawyer and enforcer of consumer and environmental protection laws.
During a ceremony in Annapolis punctuated with standing ovations and whoops of support, Frosh pledged to go after "polluters" and those who cheat seniors,...

Maryland Attorney General Douglas F. Gansler, encouraged by whopping awards and settlements in other states, could join what one analyst calls a "nationwide cascade" of litigation against the oil industry for its use years ago of a gasoline additive that has contaminated groundwater across the state.
Gansler's office is reviewing proposals from outside lawyers aimed at helping the state sue to recover the costs of dealing with the noxious, potentially cancer-causing additive methyl tertiary butyl ether,...